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October 1, 2012

Fried Cabbage

Cabbage cooked the Southern way by sauteing in bacon grease and steaming until tender.

Some people crave stuff like chocolate or potato chips. I crave stuff like cabbage or coconut pie. I can prove this by telling you that when Husband went to the kitchen for a snack last night he came back with a bag of ketchup chips (it’s a Canadian thing… I dunno) and some thin mint cookies. When I went to the kitchen for a snack I came back with the leftover cabbage from supper.

Then he told me I was gross and I told him I was the one with a healthy colon.

I posted an unofficial survey on the facebook page asking what people called this dish. We just always called it “cabbage.” If someone told me they were serving cabbage, this is what it meant to me. The majority of folks called this Fried Cabbage so that’s what I’m going to call it too.

This “frying” method is really just sautéing it in a little fat then covering with a lid so the water that’s released from the cabbage can steam it. This is also exactly how I cook collard greens (and mustard or turnip greens).

Cut the head of cabbage into quarters and remove the core from each section. Chop cabbage into 1” pieces and set aside. Heat bacon grease in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add cabbage and toss to coat. Add salt and pepper to taste. Sauté cabbage for about 10 minutes.

At this point your cabbage should start releasing some of its water. If it doesn't, and your pan is mostly dry, add chicken broth or water and toss to coat. Cover skillet, reduce heat to medium-low and continue cooking cabbage, stirring occasionally, for approximately 30 minutes or to your liking (I be liking mine a tad al dente).

*Substitute vegetable oil for bacon grease if necessary then ask the Lord for forgiveness for throwing away your bacon grease.

**This may not be necessary. Sometimes my cabbage puts out a lot of water, sometimes it doesn’t. See directions for determining whether to add chicken broth or water.

33 comments:

I also make mine with a bit of sugar when I add the water, salt and pepper! This is one of my daughter's favorite comfort foods, which is unusual for a 19 year old to like cabbage at all these days..lol! She and I can sit and polish off a whole pan full of this!

I get teased all the time because most of my recipes involve bacon grease! Apparently I am the only person in my circle of friends that keeps a mug of bacon grease in my refrigerator! Certainly must be a southern thing! I adore fried cabbage. I start it frying in the pan with the bacon grease, do the steaming thing with the lid and then I sprinkle on a tiny bit of sugar and fried it again. It gets a pretty brown and tastes like heaven!

My mama used salt pork and a little bacon grease. Always wondered what it was called because she used to call it smothered cabbage which just confused everyone. Sooo good. I like the smoked sausage and onion idea. My cousin some times adds green bell pepper but he also has too much liquid. Craving it now.

I've always called that cabbage. All this time when I hear someone say fried cabbage I picture cabbage lightly breaded and fried LOL! Anyways I just found your site and it's amazing. I love to cook - grew up in Dothan, AL.The only thing missing in this recipe is a little vinegar :)

I cut bacon up & fry that along with cabbage, onion & sometimes fresh mushrooms, I've never added any liquid & it's soooo good! I also fry bacon with my burger when I make goulash, makes a great flavor change!

I love stir fried cabbage. Most of my family like it "boiled" but I find that flavorless. I pretty much use your recipe but I do sprinkle in a bit of sugar. I also use the bacon fat that I reserve and refrigerate when I fry out bacon. The bacon I use in this dish is the "real" bacon bits that I keep as a pantry staple. Really yummy.

Hi there! While I'm not able to respond to every comment, I try hard to answer any questions that haven't been addressed in the post, recipe or in other comments. And though I may not respond to them all, I do read each and every comment and I LOVE to hear from you guys! Thanks, y'all! - Mandy